Who needs electronic shifting?

[ray j willings]

I have ridden electronic shifting and it worked quite well,,,,,,,,,,,, BUT
IMO you don't feel in contact with the bike. you lose a physical connection.
With a mechanical set up you feel like you are riding the bike and you can feel and work the gear changes. Electronic shifting puts a space between the rider and the bike.
Then you have the issue of it working. It only adds another problem to solve if you have shifting issues.
Was it made for lazy people? Tour winner Nibs will not use it and Sky have had loads of issues with D12.
I think it's a waste of time and just another gimmick to feed the pockets of Shimano etc
My friend drove an hour to surrey to go for a ride, he got his bike out of the car only to find the d12 battery flat. No gears no ride.

What do you think?

 

[King Boonen]

You like these topics don't you?

I thought Nibs had moved to EPS now? Oh, its Di2 by the way.


I've not ridden it, but everyone I know who has loves it. No more indexing, super-smooth gear changes, just hold a button to go up and down your cassette, it really does sound really good. I know people who were skeptical, tried it and never looked back.

However, I can't afford the parts, I like tinkering with bikes and my 105 groupset shifts better than most people's mechanical Ultegra/Dura-ace that I ride with (honestly, it really does!) so for me it's be a nice extra but not something I can afford or need. I also don't race so fast, quiet shifting isn't needed.

The battery going flat? I thought that was pretty much a myth as they last for months now and seeing as most of us are charging a Garmin after every ride surely you can remember to charge a groupset battery every now and then? Or keep a spare in the car? What about a car charger?


All in all it's win-win for me. People off-loading hardly used Ultegra and Dura-ace parts for pennies on the pound, I just need the money to pick some up


All in all, I can really see the benefit, but it's cost that keeps me on mechanical and I think that's unlikely to change for a few years.

 

[Bustedknuckle]

I have ridden electronic shifting and it worked quite well,,,,,,,,,,,, BUT
IMO you don't feel in contact with the bike. you lose a physical connection.
With a mechanical set up you feel like you are riding the bike and you can feel and work the gear changes. Electronic shifting puts a space between the rider and the bike.
Then you have the issue of it working. It only adds another problem to solve if you have shifting issues.
Was it made for lazy people? Tour winner Nibs will not use it and Sky have had loads of issues with D12.
I think it's a waste of time and just another gimmick to feed the pockets of Shimano etc
My friend drove an hour to surrey to go for a ride, he got his bike out of the car only to find the d12 battery flat. No gears no ride.

What do you think?

I have EPS and I think it is really keen BUT it is firmly in the 'nice to have?' or 'gadget' arena. It moves the chain around just like cable shifters, just uses trons instead of cables.

EPS is much more tactile than Di2, much more similar 'feeling' than shimano. Same shape levers, shift buttons, etc, more 'clicky'. BUT if it doesn't work(mine hasn't had any issues in almost a year, charged battery twice to date), you do feel kinda lost. Replace is the only real 'fix' if a component decides to not work.

Here's my photobucket review of putting it onto a MXLeader..and yes, it is somewhat knackered and I have a spare, MXLeader.

http://s148.photobucket.com/

But yes, neat. It is 'worth' it? Donno, 'worth' is a big word. $700 rear ders, expensive if ya fall and break something and because of soft/firmware, not backwards compatible, shimano(10s, first gen DA, or 6770, first gen ultegra Di2) with 11s and 2015 Campagnolo Chorus EPS not backwards compatible with Athena EPS(Record and SuperRecord are).

 

[King Boonen]

BK, your link just took me to my photobucket page, maybe not directly properly?

 

[richwagmn]

I've never ridden it but have heard good things.

A few things though.

First, the cost is still high. If you purchase it on a new bike it doesn't seem so bad, but buying individual components outright is crazy.

Also, Shimano seems to have some compatibility issues. I don't believe the original DA electronic shifting was compatible with Ultegra and the 11 speed stuff is not fully backwards compatible with the 10 speed stuff (unsure if Campag had any issues here)

Finally, the performance of mech shifting is just so good today. Do some minimal maintenance (cables, housings) and it works all the time. No worries about wet weather, batteries, etc.

 

[Master50]

I want it for our new tandem. Di2 would be such a help. You have to shift 3 times as much and missed shifts are always a pain. Unfortunately it seems that Shimano are locking it down such that road parts won't work with MTB parts. which is silly Tandems can benefit from combinations of road and MTB parts especially the rear Der. Mtb fronts are not so good with big chainrings so often the perfect is an MTB rear and a road triple for the front. Since little is made specifically for tandems we have more challenges finding good gear.

 

[ray j willings]

You like these topics don't you?

I thought Nibs had moved to EPS now? Oh, its Di2 by the way.


I've not ridden it, but everyone I know who has loves it. No more indexing, super-smooth gear changes, just hold a button to go up and down your cassette, it really does sound really good. I know people who were skeptical, tried it and never looked back.

However, I can't afford the parts, I like tinkering with bikes and my 105 groupset shifts better than most people's mechanical Ultegra/Dura-ace that I ride with (honestly, it really does!) so for me it's be a nice extra but not something I can afford or need. I also don't race so fast, quiet shifting isn't needed.

The battery going flat? I thought that was pretty much a myth as they last for months now and seeing as most of us are charging a Garmin after every ride surely you can remember to charge a groupset battery every now and then? Or keep a spare in the car? What about a car charger?


All in all it's win-win for me. People off-loading hardly used Ultegra and Dura-ace parts for pennies on the pound, I just need the money to pick some up


All in all, I can really see the benefit, but it's cost that keeps me on mechanical and I think that's unlikely to change for a few years.

Its about personal choice really, Nibs does not trust it. I have tried it and it made me feel unconnected to the bike.
They do have issues and when they do its a real pain in the **** it's not a simple fix. Sky had loads of problems with electronic shifting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QprXnpzS9_I

 

[Moose McKnuckles]

I think it's an incredible shifting system. I've ridden it for a few years now and have never had a missed gear, dropped chain, anything.

Quite frankly though, the Ultegra Di2 is every bit as good as the DA version. Oh, and the 9070 version feels more "plasticky" than the 7970.

 

[Bustedknuckle]

BK, your link just took me to my photobucket page, maybe not directly properly?

Hell, I donno-try this one

http://s148.photobucket.com/user/chisholm2744/library/?sort=3&page=1

 

[Bustedknuckle]

I've never ridden it but have heard good things.

A few things though.

First, the cost is still high. If you purchase it on a new bike it doesn't seem so bad, but buying individual components outright is crazy.

Also, Shimano seems to have some compatibility issues. I don't believe the original DA electronic shifting was compatible with Ultegra and the 11 speed stuff is not fully backwards compatible with the 10 speed stuff (unsure if Campag had any issues here)

Finally, the performance of mech shifting is just so good today. Do some minimal maintenance (cables, housings) and it works all the time. No worries about wet weather, batteries, etc.

First gen DA Di2/10s in unique, nothing is compatible with it(like 7400) and wiring harnesses are not being produced by shimano.

6770/ultegra 10s Di2 was compatible witj 11s Di2, both DA and ultegra until shimano changed the software available on their website. Now cannot have 6770, add 11s rear der and reprogram levers to 11s OR have 6870/11s and de-program to 10s.

For Campagnolo, the only thing NOT backward compatible is 2014 Athena EPS and 2015 Chorus EPS..altho the connectors look the same. SR/Record-intercompatible/backwards compatible, even V1 and V2 batteries, interfaces and chargers.

 

[Bustedknuckle]

I want it for our new tandem. Di2 would be such a help. You have to shift 3 times as much and missed shifts are always a pain. Unfortunately it seems that Shimano are locking it down such that road parts won't work with MTB parts. which is silly Tandems can benefit from combinations of road and MTB parts especially the rear Der. Mtb fronts are not so good with big chainrings so often the perfect is an MTB rear and a road triple for the front. Since little is made specifically for tandems we have more challenges finding good gear.

Some info here about XTR/Di2 applications.

http://velonews.competitor.com/2014...aq-mixing-shimano-road-mtb-derailleurs_356751

 

[Alex Simmons/RST]

It's good for TT set ups.

 

[42x16ss]

It's good for TT set ups.

It sure is, you can have shifters coming out the wazoo and change from drops, extensions- wherever you want.

I'd love to get Chorus EPS on my next bike because I have serious issues shifting the front dérailleur on cold days and on very long rides because I broke my left hand several years ago and the bones never really set back into the right place. This alone would make electronic shifting worthwhile for me, along with hydraulic braking. But overall I think that electronic shifting is more beneficial to the average punter on a MTB or CX bike than a roadie, if it's well maintained.

 

[FignonLeGrand]

I have ridden electronic shifting and it worked quite well,,,,,,,,,,,, BUT
IMO you don't feel in contact with the bike. you lose a physical connection.
With a mechanical set up you feel like you are riding the bike and you can feel and work the gear changes. Electronic shifting puts a space between the rider and the bike.
Then you have the issue of it working. It only adds another problem to solve if you have shifting issues.
Was it made for lazy people? Tour winner Nibs will not use it and Sky have had loads of issues with D12.
I think it's a waste of time and just another gimmick to feed the pockets of Shimano etc
My friend drove an hour to surrey to go for a ride, he got his bike out of the car only to find the d12 battery flat. No gears no ride.

What do you think?

Would you have to find a range of antistatic babywipes?

 

[aostivafan10]

@Champions League Soccer Quater final 2015@

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-um63J8ZDk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZx9mYzsrG8